This one’s a pretty big score for The Rare Beer Club. Only 150 cases or so of this coffee IPA have been sold in the U.S. in previous years. In 2016, only 60 cases will be available outside of The Rare Beer Club, and we expect those cases to go quickly. Mikkeller has found a lot of success with amalgams of IPA and coffee, with other examples in the Koppi coffee IPA line pairing Citra hops and Santa Barbara coffee, Tomahawk and Guji Natural...

This is a special offering for us, and was made with the great folks at Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales as a tribute to a departed furry friend of The Rare Beer Club’s owner, Kris Calef. Rosie was his 19-year old Maine Coon cat that passed this last October. Kris’ words: “We wanted to make a big and unique red ale to match his personality and have the beer community and our customers name the beer. The people chose Rosie del Barrio...

Light golden with crystal clarity and a tight crop of bright white foam, this brew certainly looks the part of a German-style pils. On the nose, look for lightly sweet pils malts to contribute mild notes of pale bread dough and saltine crackers. Overlaying the malt is a quintessential European-style noble hop aroma contributing herbal grassiness, earthy tones, and just a touch of lemony acidity, while hints of sulfur pop through as well, which...

This traditional Hefeweizen was rated 91 pts (“Exceptional”), earning a Gold Medal at the 2007 World Beer Championships. Expect a lot of cloudiness from this unfiltered wheat beer on the pour, and be aware that yeast sediment is likely clinging to the bottom of the bottle – you can pour carefully and leave it behind or rouse it up and pour it in your glass for a bit more of an earthy yeast note. On the nose, aromas of clove jump out along...

Lazy Magnolia’s take on an IPA starts off really well in the glass, presenting an inviting copper-amber hue and boasting lots of sticky, long-lasting foam. Hops dominate the nose, unsurprisingly, with some juicy citrus zing, floral notes, and a touch of herbal spice. We like that there’s definitely a bit of caramel malt underpinning it all. On the palate, this brew is not shy, delivering a punch of 60 IBUs. The hop profile has a lot of...

Brewed with sweet potatoes? What'll they think of next? This cream, or milk, stout is brewed with a dose of lactose sugar to sweeten things up a bit - nothing too unusual there. But sweet potatoes - that's a new one. Jefferson Stout (or "Jeff Stout" for short) pours a very deep brown color, capped with plenty of attractive brown foam. Look for some definite chocolate toastiness on the nose, accompanied by prominent caramel notes, a hint of...

This American-style pale ale is a looker, pouring an attractive amber color with some light haze and lots of fluffy foam. We got lots of spicy, herbal-grassy hop notes in the aroma on this one—a couple of us even felt a touch of mint come through—bolstered by a bit of a floral note. On the palate, there's a very nice, smooth, caramel malt core that has a bit of breadiness to it and delivers some mild sweetness to support the hops which come...

This IPA from Bent River presents quite nicely in the glass, pouring a rich medium amber with copper highlights and good head retention. On the nose, look for a bit of caramel malt as an undercurrent, topped by inviting citric, floral, and fruity hop aromas, with a touch of spice. Those hops come through with plenty of bitterness in the flavor department, balanced nicely by a backbone of mildly toasty caramel malt. Hops offer citrus and maybe...